BIOGRAPHIES

Short

Ashley Bieniarz is a budding piano pop artist poised to bring a fresh sound to the Winnipeg music scene with her dramatic combination of melancholic lyrics and elaborate piano melodies. Ashley has been a mainstay on the Winnipeg Indie scene since late 2015, performing at legendary venues such as The West End Cultural Centre, The Good Will and The Park Theatre to name a few. Ashley is currently finishing her music degree at the Desautels Faculty of Music of the University of Manitoba and has started the planning and recording process of her debut EP.

Long

Ashley Bieniarz is a budding piano pop artist poised to bring a fresh sound to the Winnipeg music scene with her melancholic lyrics and elaborate piano melodies. Drawing inspiration from an eclectic array of artists such as Regina Spektor, Rufus Wainwright, Elton John, and Queen; Ashley’s songwriting style is a potpourri of the dramatic and theatrical allowing each song to blossom into its own lush and distinct sound.

Ashley has been a mainstay on the Winnipeg Indie scene since late 2015, performing original music at iconic local venues such as The West End Cultural Centre, The Good Will, and the Graffiti Gallery. Ashley hit the ground running in early 2016 when she was voted into the Uniter Fiver, the Uniter’s top five list of the most intriguing and must-watch local artists of the coming year, which culminated in Ashley and four other acts playing the Uniter Fiver showcase at The Good Will Social Club. In the summers of 2016 and 2017 Ashley also performed as part of both the West End and Downtown Concert Series.

In 2015, the lyrics to Ashley’s first single ‘Paralyzed for Life’ were published in the first issue of Red Rising Magazine and the following year she was a featured artist in the Sound Exchange 204, again with ‘Paralyzed for Life’.

Ashley is finishing her music degree at the Desautels Faculty of Music of the University of Manitoba and has started the planning and recording process of her debut EP.

Radio Host

In 2015, Ashley created the Winnipeg Music Project. Originally a blog, the show evolved into a successful podcast and campus radio show on 101.5 UMFM. The project was created as a means to promote and give exposure to the local music scene and it’s music-makers. Each week a local artist or band makes an appearance on the show to promote upcoming performances or music releases while sharing stories about their songwriting, dynamics between band members, future aspirations and how they plan to get there. The last Tuesday of every month is reserved for the Monthly Music Wrap-Up where Ashley gives airtime to new music released that month. The show has had great success featuring guests such as Fred Penner, William Prince, Jaylene Johnson, Erin Propp, Leonard Sumner, and Keri Latimer from Leaf Rapids to name a few!

Local Community Involvement

Aside from the Winnipeg Music Project, Ashley Bieniarz has also been involved in the music community by working with BreakOut West as a juror for the Western Canadian Music Awards since 2016. In the last year, Ashley was involved as a juror for the Manitoba Music and Film and FACTOR grant programs. In recent months she has also started volunteering with Manitoba Music.. Ashley has been teaching piano at Mar-Schell's Music since 2015 and in summer of 2018 started a monthly songwriting circle and basic and advanced theory classes.

In the summer of 2018, Ashley Bieniarz continues to remain heavily involved in the Winnipeg music scene after completing her music degree at the University of Manitoba by working for Manitoba Music as a Summer Communications and Research Assistant and volunteering at Winnipeg Folk Festival and Super Spike.

Ashley can be found guest hosting We Are Young Media's Mom's House Youtube series interviewing and showcasing local Winnipeg musicians. You can watch Ashley interview Rust Owl and Bye Bye Blue.